


Too Close to the Sun

by Burgie



Category: Star Stable Online
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-30
Updated: 2018-12-30
Packaged: 2019-09-30 21:07:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,247
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17231207
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Burgie/pseuds/Burgie
Summary: Daine recovers in Ydris' care after his first disastrous trip to Pandoria. Daine belongs to HellishSam.





	Too Close to the Sun

**Author's Note:**

  * For [HellishSam](https://archiveofourown.org/users/HellishSam/gifts).
  * Inspired by [One Foot In The Grave, Other On The Ground](https://archiveofourown.org/works/17221310) by [HellishSam](https://archiveofourown.org/users/HellishSam/pseuds/HellishSam). 



Not for the first time, Ydris was glad that he didn't require sleep. Because Pandorians didn't need sleep, and anyway, Ydris had other ways of regaining energy. Oh, sure, he'd slept once or twice before, usually when he had nothing to do, but now... now, Ydris wanted to stay awake. He needed to stay awake to keep an eye on this mortal man, on Daine, whose blood was tinting the bandages dark blue and pink around his hands and arms. Oddly, the scar on his back, when it bled, was only pink. Thankfully, though, this wound only bled a little, nowhere near enough to be a concern for Ydris.

The cracks in Daine's skin, though... they were the worst. Not only did they ooze pink, but when Ydris tried to heal them, the skin around the cracks became riddled with more cracks after swelling up like a blister. In the end, Ydris left these wounds along to bleed, though he kept an eye on them. It was almost like some strange infection was afflicting Daine, though Ydris had no idea what it could be. Perhaps that monster had done something to him? Ydris wouldn't be surprised if he had, honestly.

"Oh, Daniel, what did that monster do to you?" Ydris whispered, his gloved fingers gently stroking through the damp curls that stuck to Daine's forehead. He looked so pale, though sweat dotted his brow. At least Daine was breathing steadily, and his pulse, though still a little too rapid, beat under Ydris' fingers when he rested them against Daine's neck. There was nothing else that Ydris could do for him at the moment, though, so Ydris rose from where he'd been sitting on the bed and walked over to the books that still lay scattered on his bedroom floor. His bedroom could look like a cozy lovenest, a romantic abode, or his own private quarters, depending on what Ydris needed it for. And right now, his bedroom was acting like an infirmary, so he needed his books and desk. The potion station would also come in handy, should he have need of it. Which he well might, given the strangeness of Daine's condition.

Settling down at the desk, Ydris lit several lamps about him, causing them to glow with soft pink and purple lights as he perused book after book. Daine seemed to be stable, so Ydris was able to look through the books with much more focus now that Daine wasn't bleeding out. Nothing in Pandorian maladies, nothing in curses, nothing in the other various medical malady books that he had. Well, Daine certainly didn't have Pandorian Pox, he wasn't covered in glowing pink spots.

A low moan pulled Ydris from his research after some amount of time had passed. Ydris had no idea how long, he'd closed the circus indefinitely when he'd left to figure out what was going on in Pandoria, and he certainly hadn't had the time to go and look out of a window or door. He turned at another sound, though, hoping that Daine would be awake.

But Daine looked utterly wretched, his hands gripping the bedcovers tightly as his face twisted in a grimace of pain.

"Daniel?" Ydris whispered, approaching him. He sat down on the edge of the bed, holding a hand out to touch Daine's forehead and see if it had become any warmer. But Daine jerked away from him, his eyes opening to glare at Ydris. Ydris was taken aback by the look of them. Those eyes... there was nothing human about them. Not in the burning golden irises, and certainly not in the now-pink whites of his eyes. At once, Ydris recognised the signs, though he wasn't sure if he should leave Daine's side now that he was awake. Daine looked like a man in the final stages of Pandorian poisoning, an illness that only affected humans. Seeing this, tears slipped down Ydris' cheeks unbidden. No. He couldn't be feeling like this for a human, shouldn't be feeling like this for a human. Daine was mortal, Pandoria was clearly poison to him, Ydris had no business trying to drag him into it.

And yet, when Daine's grip on Ydris slackened, the man having clung onto Ydris tightly as Ydris cast a spell of sleeping on him, Ydris felt his heart skipping a beat.

This continued for about a week, Daine waking up in great pain only to be sent back under by Ydris. And, though the cracks on Daine's body began to fade, the scar on his back still remained an angry pink. And, for a while, Ydris began to believe that Daine was recovering. Which was good, because he needed to reopen his circus. Or, at least, that was the lie that Ydris told himself. The truth, the one that he would never admit to, not even to himself, was that he was relieved that Daine had recovered because he was so worried about him.

But then, the mumbling began. At first, Ydris thought that Daine had finally become lucid again. But, when he turned away from the research that he'd been doing at his desk, he inhaled sharply at the sight of Daine tossing and turning restlessly in bed.

"No," Daine mumbled, his body trembling as he clung to the sheets. "No, get away, what are you nonononononotthewingsstopCloud NO!" At this last outburst, Daine sat up, eyes a burning pink as he panted. He was shaking so much and looked so scared, eyes wide with fright, that Ydris couldn't help but to go to him.

"Daniel, it's okay, it was just a nightmare," said Ydris, sitting on the bed beside Daine. But just sitting on the edge of the bed wouldn't cut it this time, Daine needed comfort, and Ydris couldn't provide that if he was sitting on the edge of the bed.

Daine looked at Ydris, his hair hanging limply around his face, and flung his arms around Ydris in a sob. His body shook as he dug his fingers into Ydris' back. Ydris was so concerned by this, so intent on wanting to help Daine feel better, that he barely noticed the sensation of claws digging into him. He would only notice later, after Daine had slipped back under. But right now, Ydris was intent only on holding Daine, hoping to soothe him as Daine sobbed into his shoulder. This was so much worse than the nightmares that Daine spoke of suffering from.

"It wasn't a nightmare, though," said Daine, pulling away to look at Ydris with teary eyes. They still burned pink, a sight that worried Ydris to no end. Pink eyes was the first sign of Pandorian poisoning. "It happened. That monster- he got me, he hurt me, he almost killed me."

"Shh, my phoenix, it is alright," said Ydris. He pulled one arm away from Daine, summoning a bottle of water. "Drink this, it will help you feel better." Daine drank thirstily, draining the bottle quickly. He dropped it on the bed once it was empty, still trying to breathe deeply enough to calm himself.

"Did you... save me?" Daine asked, looking at Ydris again. He probably had no idea what he looked like, but Ydris didn't care. Just being pinned by that gaze was enough to make his stomach flip, which was totally not the appropriate reaction to have.

"Your friends brought you to me," said Ydris. "I don't know why, but I am glad that they did."

"Me too," said Daine. "If it was up to the druids, I'd be dead by now. Louisa healed my arm but I dunno if she can heal... this." At the mention of her name, though, Daine froze. "Are they okay? Willow, Izzy, everyone? Did they make it out okay?"

"Well... I heard that there was quite the battle," said Ydris. "But yes, all of your friends made it out okay. Better off than you, at any rate."

"Oh, thank fuck," said Daine, closing his eyes. "I thought..." He shook his head, immediately regretting this action as his head spun. "Never mind. I'm fucking starving, can I get some food?"

"Of course," said Ydris, rising from the bed. He was just glad that Daine was awake, and lucid this time. Every other time, his brief fits of lucidity had ended with him falling back into feverish dreams.

But perhaps those fever dreams were better than the nightmares, as Ydris quickly discovered that night. He'd decided to share the bed with Daine, wanting to bring the human comfort (and perhaps bring himself comfort as well, knowing that Daine was sleeping peacefully in his arms). Ydris had even managed to fall asleep, Daine a warm and welcome weight in his arms. But then, Daine's arm collided with his chest, alerting Ydris to what was going on. And Ydris watched in dismay as Daine began to thrash beside him, mumbling things in his sleep again. This time, his friends' names were mixed in there, agonised cries of their names as horrible things happened to their dream selves. And then a long, bloodcurdling scream as Daine's back arched away from Ydris.

"No not my wings, I just got them!" Daine screamed, tears streaking down his face as remembered agony twisted his features. Ydris couldn't bear it.

"Daniel, wake up," said Ydris, eyes wide as he gently shook Daine awake. Daine gasped as he opened his eyes, a dimmer pink now but still startlingly bright in the darkness of the room as he looked at Ydris.

"They're safe?" Daine asked, his chest still heaving as he struggled to take in air.

"Yes," said Ydris, placing his hands on Daine's shoulders. "All of your friends, your beloved horse, all of them are safe, as are you. That monster cannot hurt you anymore."

Daine only nodded and clung to Ydris tightly, damp with a cold sweat. And this time, Ydris felt the pinpricks of claws that he'd discovered earlier. It just didn't make sense, humans didn't have claws. Maybe it had something to do with his illness? Or maybe Garnok had done something to him in there?

Even when the last of Daine’s scars had faded, though (aside from the large one on his back), and the whites of his eyes were white once more, Ydris didn't want Daine to leave. And Daine didn't seem to want to leave, either. But Ydris had to broach the subject, and he did as he and Daine sat in his tiny kitchen (it resembled the kitchen in an apartment building because Ydris had found that kitchen when he'd done a quick Joogle on kitchens) eating cereal at the kitchen table.

"How are you feeling?" Ydris asked as he watched Daine eat. At least he had a healthy appetite, even if it was for unhealthy things like sugary cereal. Daine munched on his spoonful and swallowed before answering.

"Physically, I feel better," said Daine. "But I still feel like shit mentally." He trembled, looking down into his cereal. "I can't stop remembering... that."

"Eat first," said Ydris, knowing how important it was for humans to eat. He'd heard of humans fasting out of extreme emotion, which he always found rather stupid. Humans had such small lives, and he knew that some humans didn't get enough to eat at all, so why willingly starve oneself?

"Will you nag me until I do?" Daine asked, a small smile touching his lips as he looked at Ydris.

"Perhaps," said Ydris. It felt... odd, to be talking to Daine like this. As though Daine were Ydris' partner, his lover. Strange, but not unpleasant. Which in turn was frightening and made no sense. Fuck, Ydris really had fallen for this man. And he couldn't even say that it was because he'd enjoyed the flesh of mortals, because he didn't want just that from Daine. He wanted... more of this. This feeling of gentleness, of caring for another being, of wanting to be more than just an individual.

"Do you think I could... stay here a bit longer?" Daine asked after he'd eaten, staring down into his empty bowl.

"Of course, mon cher," said Ydris, surprised at the complete and utter lack of hesitation. "You are still suffering from those terrible nightmares, after all, and I need to keep an eye on your condition." It was... not completely a lie. Ydris did want to keep an eye on Daine, to see if the scar on his back was going to heal any further. But he also didn't want Daine to leave, he wanted him to stay here. Even though it had already been a few weeks by this point, going by the calendar on Daine's phone that Daine had started to use.

The smile on Daine's face about took Ydris' breath away, although it quickly faded.

"Thanks," said Daine. "I really hope I'm not being a burden." And, for once in his life, Ydris decided to tell the truth as he laid his hand gently atop Daine's.

"You are not a burden," said Ydris. "I would actually not be annoyed if you decided to visit more often."

And, for the first time since he'd woken up in Ydris' bed in huge amounts of pain, Daine felt his heart flutter. Ah, shit. He was really falling for this guy. And even when he'd tried to get over it, to avoid him, Daine had still ended up back here when he'd been at his lowest.

Maybe it was a sign.


End file.
